Bank of America Corp. said Friday it is ready to settle federal and state investigations into sales of risky auction-rate securities, joining eight other big investment banks that have agreed to buy back a total of more than $50 billion of the securities.

The Democrats' seemingly unending battle to pick a nominee for the White House is taking a toll on the public, with growing numbers saying this year's presidential campaign is too negative and has lasted too long.

Builders of the Freedom Tower poured a bad batch of concrete into the foundation of the skyscraper replacing the World Trade Center and spent the last few weeks removing it after tests showed it wasn't strong enough, officials said.

Builders of the Freedom Tower poured a bad batch of concrete into the foundation of the skyscraper replacing the World Trade Center and spent the last few weeks removing it after tests showed it wasn't strong enough, officials said.